reflected in someone like me
by Min Daae
Summary: Loki's chosen a side, more or less. (And this time: no interruptions.) Follows "with an untrained voice."


_Author's Notes: This is a fic in the verse that technically 'ended' with "with an untrained voice" and_ _takes place a bit after "with an untrained voice"; Loki is living in a sequestered floor he has to himself in the tower. It's probably been about three months, maybe, since the end of "untrained voice."_

_That's the important background, I think. You have no idea how long I've been waiting to write this fic. In order to do it, though, I had to figure out how I was going to make it work, first. I hope I've managed that, at least to some degree. (If anyone wants more Steve/Loki porn, I am currently doing the 30 day OTP NSFW challenge at my tumblr, under the #thirty days of shameless porn tag._

_The title, by the way, is from a song that is perfectly Steve/Loki (at least for me): "Someone Like Me" by Ophelia of the Spirits. Go find it. Listen to it. Feel feelings. If you're like me._

_As always, my eternal love to my beta, zaataronpita, without whom I would be more of a mess than I already am. Thank you._

* * *

They weren't doing great.

For a bone-shivering moment when Amora had shown up accompanied by a twin flash of green fire, Steve had thought – even _knowing _where Loki was, he'd still thought it was going to be him. It wasn't anyone he recognized, though – all that mattered was that he was some kind of technopath on top of the magic.

Apparently Amora hadn't forgotten Tony's little trick that had brought her crashing to earth last time.

It was messing with their communicators too, and if Thor and Bruce were keeping Amora herself occupied that still left the small army of determined civilians quite sure that their sole desire was Amora's will, which in this case meant attacking the rest of them.

Incapacitating someone without harming them in a serious or permanent way wasn't all that difficult. Managing it when they were trying their damnedest to kill you got considerably harder.

At the moment, Steve was fighting alone against a crowd of businessmen armed with makeshift weaponry. They might have been laughable if there was one, or even three, but with eight Steve was starting to have a hard time simultaneously fending off their attacks and trying not to hurt them.

He didn't' turn quite fast enough and felt something stab into the back of his knee. Steve yelled, loudly, as his leg tried to buckle, but then as one his businessmen blinked and dropped like stunned oxen. He whirled around. Had Tony got something working? – but Tony, it looked like, was still wrestling against whatever their newcomer was doing to his tech, so it couldn't have been…

It took him a moment to catch it, and then another to realize what it was. Little flashes of green fire, here, there, ensorcelled civilians dropping in its wake. He stood up straighter, narrowing his eyes, trying to get a good look. He appeared right next to their technopath and paused just long enough for Steve to see for sure: standing tall, not even in battle armor.

"Shit, is that," he heard Tony say through their crackling, static-y comms, sounding not quite panicked, and for a moment Steve's stomach dropped (no, Loki, no, don't do it) and he froze. The technopath-cum-sorcerer turned in a flash, raising one glowing green hand, and Loki's simply snapped out and grabbed his upraised wrist.

The green went out like a snuffed candle flame. For a moment, Steve thought Loki was going to toss him off the building, but then he let go, and he crumpled without a sound. Or at least without an audible one.

Then Loki vanished again.

The sound of Tony's suit hummed back to steadiness, flickering lights back to full brightness, and he leapt into the sky with an enthusiastic, "aw, _yeah!_" soaring over toward where booms of thunder and flashes of light signaled Amora and the others' battle.

"We're back online," Steve said, trying to keep a smile from spreading across his face. "Everybody sound off, what's your…" He trailed off. Loki had appeared twenty feet away, down the street, his eyes fixed on Steve. He couldn't quite make out his expression, but started running in his direction. "Loki!" Steve shouted, not sure what he meant to follow it with, but he was already gone.

A moment later he heard a shriek and a dull boom, and then nothing. The last few civilians Amora had snared dropped like the others.

Steve started jogging over in that direction, and wasn't halfway there when the line crackled open. "We got Amora," Tony said. "Or…somebody did."

Steve sped up, and found all of the others – except for Bruce, who was splashing his face in a municipal water fountain and looking shaky as he always did after – gathered around a block of ice. "What's," he started to ask, and then said, "no."

"Yep." Clint eyed the block like it might bite. "Thar she blows."

Amora hadn't even start to thaw by the time they'd bundled her into SHIELD custody to be taken to the Raft. "Is she alive?" Natasha had asked bluntly, her nose wrinkled. Thor, who'd been astonishingly quiet, nodded at once.

"Most certainly," he said easily. "She herself is not frozen; merely the air around her. L – it was explained to me how such things work, once."

Tony was the first to speak up after SHIELD had cleared out and it was just them and the wreckage of another fight.

"So…that's new, right?" he said. "I didn't miss that on someone's power list, did I? Cause I saw a thing, but I'm thinking maybe I was confused about the thing that I saw – hoping, actually-"

"I don't think you were," Natasha said, a little dryly. "It's not something on our roster. Someone else, though…"

"Maybe the X-Men decided to drop in," Clint said, though he sounded gloomy enough that Steve could tell he didn't believe it.

"It was Loki," Thor said, before Steve could. Slowly, a beaming grin spread across his features, so wide it stretched his face. "I have seen him do such a thing before, in battle. He came here and helped us."

The little tentative bubble in Steve's chest that had appeared the moment the new sorcerer – Techno-wizard, Tony was calling him, without a trace of irony – had dropped, swelled and rose. The moment he'd heard that not a single civilian had been seriously harmed. That maybe…maybe…

"Or else he wanted it to look that way," Clint said, darkly, and Tony's expression said much the same. Steve frowned.

"Even if that's the case," he said, "whatever his motive…he helped. And that deserves our gratitude."

~.~

Steve slogged through the debriefing, his thoughts continually flitting back to Loki, the more for how studiously all of them avoided mentioning him, although Thor's almost inappropriately cheerful mood had a clear enough source.

As for himself – he felt almost giddy. He tried to keep in mind that he couldn't assume anything, that maybe there was something else going on, maybe he was missing something, but it was hard, and it was hard to tell if it was his instincts or wishful thinking that told him he was right not to doubt. He could feel Natasha watching him closely, but she didn't say anything, and she didn't say anything when he quietly excused himself the moment the meeting ended and slipped off, even knowing the teasing he'd get from Tony later.

Thor caught his eye just before he left, though, and beamed at him. Steve almost blushed. Sometimes he thought Thor acted like an approving mother to them both. Sighing and shaking his head a little, he headed for the stairs up to Loki's floor.

Up until today, Loki had been pretty quiet. Kept to himself. His door was consistently locked to Thor, but he spoke to Steve readily enough, if always with a strange kind of formality that was new and that Steve wasn't sure he could decipher. It worried him, but he didn't quite dare bring it up, fairly certain that doing so would only invite trouble.

But what Loki had done today…

He knocked on the door after a moment's pause, light but firm. It opened almost at once, and without Loki's usual inquiry to his identity, and Loki stood in the doorway, still wearing his leather if not his armor. His eyes flicked quickly up and down Steve's body, evaluating, and then back to his face, his expression tight. Steve blinked a little.

"…hey," he said, after a moment's silence during which Loki simply stared at him, and Loki seemed to shake himself out of some reverie to step back from the door.

"I wasn't expecting you so soon," he said, peculiarly. Steve smiled a little.

"I came right up after the debriefing finished."

"You must have." Loki was watching him with strange intentness as Steve stepped inside and he closed the door behind him.

"You didn't have to leave in such a rush," Steve said, after a moment. "I would've liked…" he trailed off, feeling suddenly awkward and wrong-footed. Loki's mouth twitched a little towards amusement, but it faded quickly, and Steve frowned. "…is something wrong?"

"Are you well?" Loki's voice was almost brusque, taut. Steve blinked, and then frowned, taken aback by what sounded almost like hostility.

"I'm…yes?"

"You are not hurt." He seemed tense. Almost vibrating with it, really. Steve felt his frown deepen.

"Nothing serious, no…" Loki paced away like a tiger in a cage, not looking particularly reassured. "Is something wrong?"

Loki's teeth flashed, but the expression wasn't quite a snarl. Was almost…nervous. "I saw you stabbed." Steve opened his mouth to ask when, and then remembered. Just before Loki had appeared. It hadn't been severe, or deep, and if it'd be uncomfortable for a bit yet…he blinked, shook his head, blinked again.

"You were – watching?"

"Yes," Loki said, slightly clipped, as though Steve were focusing on an unimportant detail. "I make a habit of it, when you go on your…expeditions. As I cannot be present, I at least like to…observe. One never knows what may happen." _You worry about me, _Steve thought, but didn't quite dare say. Still, he felt a little wash of warmth. Simple enough to fill in the gaps in what Loki didn't – wouldn't – say. He'd seen things going poorly, and then he'd seen him wounded, and rather than remain safely hidden…

The deliberate coolness swept away the last of Steve's doubts regarding if this had been some kind of plan. "It was just a scratch," he said, after a moment in which he realized Loki was giving him an odd look. "Nothing serious. What's…"

"It would be so easy," Loki said, cutting him off, and then stopped. He shook his head, paced back and then away again. "If you had…" Loki's lips pressed together as though he were barely holding words back, attempting to seal them inside, but after a moment he smoothed that away too, and straightened up. "Well. Another triumph for your motley band, Captain."

Steve felt a smile tugging at his mouth and let it come, warm and fond. "Thanks to you," he said, simply. Loki coughed.

"I hope none of your teammates felt their territory…infringed upon."

"I don't think so." Steve hesitated, and then took a step closer to Loki. "But…I mean it. Thank you. You pulled our bacon out of the fire."

Loki scoffed, lowly. "Very seldom do I pass up the chance to humiliate Amora. And that newest creature of hers – positively pathetic." Because he was looking for it, Steve caught the slight trace of agitation in Loki's shoulders, and wanted to sigh. There were all kinds of things he wanted to say, _it's okay to do things for other people _and _what's so frightening about accepting thanks? _He made himself say neither.

"Loki," he said instead, and then exhaled. Loki's eyes flicked to him.

"What?" he said, somewhat snappishly, and when Steve gave him a look, moderated his tone slightly. "What is it?"

Steve resisted the urge to rub the bridge of his nose. "I'm serious," he said, trying to impress on his voice the honesty of the feeling. "I'm not sure we could have pulled it off."

"I'm sure you would have found the means." Loki flipped a hand. "There is no need to make something out of nothing."

"I'm not," Steve said, stubbornly. "I'm just speaking my mind. Honestly."

Loki looked at Steve more directly, his eyebrows furrowed and eyes underneath slightly narrowed. Whatever he saw on his face made the corners of Loki's lips turn slightly downward. "Something is upsetting you."

"Not – _upsetting,_" Steve objected. "I just…I want you to realize. You helped us. You didn't need to, and the strict rules would say you shouldn't have and you could have gotten in trouble for it, but you saw something you could do and you did it. That's…" Heroism, he wanted to say, but knew how Loki would answer that. "That's…good."

Loki's expression flickered. "A small thing at little cost to myself."

Steve shook his head. "That's not how it works."

"Isn't it?" Loki seemed tense, but this time Steve wasn't going to back off. Sometimes…

"You helped," Steve said. "That's what matters. And we have two supervillains off the streets, because of you."

Loki's shoulders drew up. "Amora will escape soon enough, I don't doubt, given your abysmal understanding of sorcery."

"_Still,_" Steve said stubbornly, and then added, "You don't have to make excuses for…you don't need to feel like you have to justify yourself." Loki was silent, his expression almost wary. But his eyes didn't leave Steve's, and there was no immediate contradiction. "You helped us," Steve repeated, almost gently.

At that, Loki's shoulders twitched and he half turned away. "Yes," he said, sounding almost defensive, "So you keep saying, and perhaps I did, but I would not have had to if you had not so foolishly-"

Steve moved, giving up on words. He covered the strides between them, wrapped his arms around Loki's waist, and pulled him in to kiss him firmly, not worrying about cameras or anything, just – kissing him. Loki made a small, brief sound of surprise, his lips parting, body tensing against Steve's for a moment before he seemed to melt. Steve felt his tongue flicker out and met it with his own, Loki's hands coming up and settling on his shoulders, flexing to press into muscle.

Steve pulled back slowly. Loki licked his lips and then opened his eyes.

"Well," he said, sounding just faintly startled. "That is…"

Steve fidgeted, suddenly nervous. "—too much?"

"Oh no," Loki said. He tipped his head back, a wide smile starting to spread across his face. "No, not in the least." He took a step toward Steve, his hands drifting up to cup around Steve's neck, his voice lowering a little. "In fact, I think I would like it very much if you would…do it again."

Steve felt his body heat up and almost lunged forward to kiss him again. His hands found Loki's waist and pulled him in closer. Loki's teeth caught his lower lip and bit down just lightly, tongue soothing over the spot a moment later, his fingertips digging in to the back of Steve's neck. He drew back and kissed a line along Steve's jaw, fastened his mouth to his pulse and fluttered his tongue against it. Steve's breathing hitched and his hands dug into Loki's waist.

Loki made a small sound against his skin and Steve let go immediately. "Sorry," he said, hastily, "I didn't mean to-"

"No," Loki murmured. "I like it. Your hands on me, digging in almost hard enough to mark – mm. I wish they would." Loki's mouth locked over Steve's pulse again and he sucked hard. Steve's whole body jerked and he could feel himself responding, not just to the stimulation but to that voice and the tone in it-

He swallowed hard and brought his hands back to Loki's waist, hardly thinking about tipping his head back to offer more of his neck to that suction, the flat scrape of Loki's teeth, the flutter of his tongue.

_You should probably stop this, _murmured a still rational voice at the back of his mind, only just barely audible, but it didn't offer any compelling reasons. "I can feel your heart racing," Loki murmured into his neck, voice low and slightly rough. The jump of your pulse under my tongue."

Steve felt a tug between his legs, a tightness low in his belly. He licked his lips and tried to take a few deep breaths. "I-"

Loki's hands moved back to his shoulders, thumbs digging in just above his collarbones, other fingers splayed wide. He could feel every one of them through his shirt. Loki's head lifted and his eyes met Steve's, lips just inches from his. His eyes were – were they always that bright green?

"Too much?" Loki murmured, and Steve could feel his breath, the lines of his body close but not quite touching, and gave up on self-restraint.

"No," he said, barely more than an exhale. He wrapped his arms around Loki's waist, pulled him in against him, and kissed him slowly and deeply, Loki's arms twining around his neck, hips against his. He pulled back after a moment and his eyes snagged on the expanse of pale skin of Loki's throat. He bent his head and after a moment's hesitation licked a line up the side.

Loki twitched against him. "Mmm," he said, quietly, and emboldened, Steve did it again. There was a slight taste to his skin, a faintly electric tang under the salt of sweat that made his tongue tingle. Steve disentangled one of his hands from around Loki's waist and brought it up to his hair and ran his fingers through slightly stiffened black strands. Loki inhaled sharply. "—bite me," he said, suddenly. "I want to know you were there, I want to feel an ache in my neck where you've been-"

"Nnh," Steve said, and it was just _words, _even in that _voice_ how could it make him feel like someone had just run their hands over his whole body and left him wanting more? He caught a bit of skin between his teeth, though, and bit down. Loki's fingers dug into his shoulders.

"Harder," he said, lowly, and Steve hardly even thought before obeying. Loki's body arched against his, a sound escaping his throat that made Steve feel hot all over, and he moved his mouth up an inch and bit again, sucking a little this time just to feel the way Loki tensed against him, the way his hips jerked forward against Steve's and-

Steve jerked his head up, suddenly acutely aware of his growing erection and the matching hard, hot line against his leg where Loki was pressed against him. The sound Loki made when he pulled away was not quite a whine.

Steve swallowed several times, trying to gather his thoughts. "I – what are we – what are you planning to…"

"Planning?" Loki's eyes opened. The expression on his face made new arousal pool in Steve's belly. "I'm planning to touch you as much as I can. To taste every inch of your skin. To make you feel pleasure until there's no room for anything else. To finally finish what Stark interrupted." His eyebrows quirked. "Does that sound...agreeable…to you?"

Steve's mouth had gone dry. He tried to work some moisture back into it. "Um," he managed. _Take it slow, _he tried to remind himself. _That was the plan, that was… _"…yes," he said, finally, not quite able to find a wittier answer, and then they were kissing again, Loki's mouth fierce and hungry on his, his tongue teasing against Steve's lips, slipping into his mouth when he parted them, then pulling back. Steve could feel his own heart pounding, slid one hand further into Loki's hair.

Loki pulled his mouth away and dropped his head to Steve's shoulder, fluttered his tongue against the join of neck and shoulder and then sank his teeth into muscle. Steve yelped, his hand tightening in Loki's hair and pulling at it, and Loki's hips rolled against his.

Loki ran his tongue over the fresh ache and lifted his head, grinned.

Steve pulled him in and kissed that grin, this time catching Loki's lip in his teeth. He was rewarded with a sharp little "ah!" and Loki's hands gliding down his shoulders, over his back, following the curve of his spine. His whole body was starting to feel like one great big knot, everywhere Loki's hands or mouth or hips weren't yearning to be touched. He was acutely aware the heat of his erection pressed between them every time Loki's hips or thigh or cock brushed or pressed or ground against it. His hips were moving without him telling them to in little uneven jerks.

He jumped when Loki's hands slid over his buttocks and squeezed. "You're so warm," Loki murmured, and there was that voice again, making his nerves quiver. "Almost burning against me." He shifted, and the muscle of his thigh slid against Steve's cock, just enough friction that he couldn't bite back a moan, though he blushed on hearing the sound. Loki leaned in and mouthed at Steve's ear, sucked the earlobe into his mouth and bit down lightly. "I like," he murmured, "feeling the heat of your arousal pressed against me." The muscles in his leg flexed, and Steve's hips thrust helplessly against it. His breathing was coming raggedly and short.

"Loki," Steve said, and wasn't sure if it was protest or something else. Loki's hands slid back up, rubbed circles in his lower back.

"I told you I could get used to hearing you say my name like that." His mouth brushed against Steve's jaw, then sucked at it. Steve felt it in his whole body, every nerve answering, his cock trying to twitch where it was trapped in his uncomfortably tight pants.

"I'll-" he swallowed hard. "I'll – keep that in mind."

Loki drew back just a little, hands rubbing over his shoulders, and examined his face. His fingers trailed down over Steve's chest, slowly, and Steve was beginning to feel like he was wearing too many clothes. Loki's tongue touched his teeth and then withdrew, and he smiled. There was something sharp and slightly dark, hungry about that smile. Steve's stomach clenched, not unpleasantly.

Loki tapped one finger against the center of his chest. "Now you…stay right there." His hands trailed down Steve's sides to his waist, then his hips, rubbing circles over the line of his hipbone. The corners of his mouth quirked. "Don't forget to breathe."

Steve frowned, slightly. "What are you-"

Loki slid gracefully down to his knees.

All the words flew out of his head at once. He gaped down at Loki, who smirked up at him and then leaned in, breathed at the tent in the front of his khakis. Steve's breath snagged in his chest and he gulped for air for a few seconds, just that whisper of warm air almost doing more than all the friction of a moment before.

"Oh," he said, a little blankly, and Loki's thumbs pressed in above his hips and drew a line inward along the waistline of his pants. Steve's stomach muscles clenched and quivered under his hands. His knees felt weak, his whole body hot and sensitized to touch…

Loki quirked one eyebrow, looking up at him with his head tilted slightly to the side. Kneeling meant something to Loki, Steve couldn't help but think. Was he – was that – intentional? Loki's fingertip circled the button holding his pants closed. "May I?"

"Um – yes," Steve said, though it came out sounding a little like a croak. He tried again. "Yes, I mean, of course, can I-"

Loki's deft fingers undid the button and then the zipper. Steve could feel his face heating, half of him wanting to avert his eyes and the rest – the rest _needing _to see everything. Loki's fingers slipped just inside and Steve wobbled and gasped, sharply. It wasn't like touching himself, even that slight brush already sending an electric jolt of pleasure up his spine.

His hands found their way into Loki's hair as his hands dipped into Steve's pockets and started to slide his pants off over his hips, leaving his boxers. He pulled the khakis down to Steve's ankles, frowned slightly at the shoes he was still wearing. He flicked a hand and Steve blinked at his suddenly bare feet.

"I'll need those back," he managed to say, not sure where it came from. Loki's mouth quirked, amused.

"Eventually," he murmured, and then tapped Steve's thigh with one hand. "Step back," he murmured, and Steve stepped out of his pants without thinking, and found his back up against a wall. He leaned into it almost gratefully, the support coming none too soon as Loki leaned forward and mouthed wetly at the front of his boxers.

Steve pulled his hands from Loki's hair to catch himself against the wall. "Ah-!" Loki's quiet laugh sent a vibration into sensitive flesh, and his hips jerked.

Loki's tongue flicked against the head of his cock just peeking through the front of his boxers, and Steve's eyes slammed closed. He couldn't take this. It was too much, too…

The warmth of Loki's mouth pulled away and Steve heard himself make a sound pathetically like a whine. He blushed hotly, but Loki's hands just came up and curled over his hips, thumbs rubbing those little circles again.

Steve forced his eyes open and looked down at Loki's upturned face. His face was full of almost smug satisfaction, and it just fanned the fire in his belly hotter.

Loki's fingertips hooked under the waistband of his boxers. "You look lovely," he said, voice almost a purr. "Face flushed, your heart racing, your chest heaving. _Wanting._" It wasn't fair, Steve decided, the way that voice made him feel. He felt like he was going to shudder out of his skin. Loki started pulling his boxers slowly down, fingertips trailing against skin and why was he going so _slow…_he couldn't pull his eyes away. Loki's gaze flicked up as he slid the boxers off Steve's hips, freeing his erection. There was a gleam in his eyes that made Steve's heart rate jump.

His eyes trailed lingeringly over Steve's body and swept down to an intent appraisal of his cock. Very deliberately, Loki's tongue swept out and swiped across his bottom lip. Steve felt his cock twitch and another surge of heat tighten in his belly.

Loki leaned forward and down, lowered his head slightly, and licked a slow stripe up the side of Steve's shaft. Steve almost yelped, startled by the wet touch and the damp streak his tongue left behind. His breathing stuttered and his whole body jerked. "Ohh," he said, and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to control himself. "I-"

Loki's tongue traced a slow spiral on the underside of his cock. The thought was gone before Steve could finish it, simply staring gaping down as Loki lowered his head further and drew his tongue over Steve's balls. Steve thumped his head back against the wall, trying desperately to take deep breaths. He squeezed his eyes closed and clenched his fists as Loki mouthed sensitive skin, sucked lightly, and then was sliding his tongue back up, tracing the vein where Steve swore he could feel his pulse thudding.

He made his hands move and slid them back into Loki's hair. Loki's head tilted into his hands slightly, and he made a sound almost like a purr that sent another throb of desire straight down between his legs.

Loki's eyes flicked up to his face, bright green and – his pupils were huge, Steve noticed. Dilated wide and black and the look on his face – that almost predatory hunger –

He groaned, lowly. "Loki," he managed to breathe, and then Loki rocked forward and took the head of Steve's aching cock between his lips. For a bare moment Steve forgot to breathe, and when he remembered it was a ragged inhale. Loki's mouth was warm and wet and close and _oh _sliding down his cock to take more of him. It felt like his eyes were going to bug out of his head or his heart was going to pound right out of his chest – his hips thrust urgently forward before he could stop them but Loki didn't make a sound of protest, just slid his hands over Steve's hips and _hummed._

Steve felt the vibration through his whole body and his knees went weak. It felt like it was only Loki's hands on him that kept him upright at all. All he could think about was the pulsing need in his loins and Loki's mouth, the tug of suction as Loki's cheeks hollowed and his tongue fluttered and he wasn't going to last long at all, was going to last embarrassingly short if Loki didn't – stop? Do more? Steve wasn't sure how that sentence ended.

Loki's mouth slid back up along his cock, leaving flushed skin wet with spit as his tongue swiped over the slit, another one of those little hums. Steve's fingers dug into Loki's scalp, tugged unconsciously at his hair. He felt almost dizzy, lightheaded, gasping for breath like he couldn't quite get enough air. The pressure was building between his legs and Loki just kept – kept-

This time when Loki swallowed him it was fully, and Steve's eyes opened and closed helplessly, a sound like a whine squeezed from his chest. Loki's fingers pressed flat against his stomach and Steve felt him swallow, the constriction squeezing just _right _and Steve lost it.

He tried to push Loki back but Loki's fingers locked over his hips, held him close, his throat and lips and tongue working even as Steve came. He slumped against the wall, chest heaving as he finished and Loki drew away only slowly, tongue gently licking sensitive skin clean.

Steve didn't wait to fully catch his breath. He shifted his hands to Loki's shoulders and pulled him up, dragged him in for a kiss without pausing to think. Loki made a faintly startled noise but then relaxed against him, body pressing towards his and it took Steve a moment to realize that the unfamiliar flavor to Loki's mouth was his-

He pulled back, suddenly embarrassed. "I didn't mean to-"

"Hush," Loki said, his voice slightly rough. He leaned in and bit down lightly on Steve's ear, then murmured, "I like the way you taste." Steve felt his whole body flush and surged forward against Loki again, kissing him fiercely if without any expertise.

He felt the hot press of Loki's arousal against his hip through his clothes and tried to push forward against it, to offer some kind of friction. Loki ground against him with a low sound, his fingers digging into Steve's waist with almost bruising force. "You still need," Steve tried to say. Loki bit his neck, a sharp nip that made Steve gasp.

"Indeed," he said, and then pulled back. He reached for the complicated clasps of his clothing, and then pulled his hands away and jerked one in a swift gesture. His tunic and leather melted away, leaving him stripped to the waist, just a pair of breeches that did nothing to mask how hard he was.

Steve stared at him, mouth feeling a little dry, still propped against the wall. He was all lean muscle and pale skin, the circles of his nipples barely a flush darker. Loki smiled and spread his hands. "Do I please?" he murmured, and Steve half opened his mouth, closed it, and then pushed off the wall, pulling Loki against him, this time letting his mouth roam across the now naked shoulders, back along his collarbone. Loki's hands spread wide across his back and the little sighing noise he made was music to Steve's ears.

He caught the couch out of the corner of his eye and shifted to move them toward it. Loki let himself be guided, murmuring low and rapidly, "—ah, yes, that's – I can feel you, your mouth is so hot it might burn me, I _would _like that, your mark emblazoned on my skin as clearly as mine on you-" It felt like Loki's voice, with that tone in it, might as well go straight to his cock, turning him on all over again, and Steve couldn't decide if he desperately wanted him to keep talking or wanted to find out what it would take to make him stop.

The back of Loki's knees hit the couch and Steve paused a moment, shifting his mouth to the hollow at the base of Loki's throat, dipping his tongue in and then trailing kisses urgently up his throat, feeling a little pulse of satisfaction at the way Loki bent his head back for him. He sucked on a mouthful of flesh, not rough but steady and firm, and Loki moaned, low and rich, his hands flexing on the muscles of Steve's back, and then pulling.

They toppled onto the couch together, Steve falling heavily atop Loki. Steve tried to lift himself up, reflexively, but Loki pulled him down hard against him, his mouth finding Steve's and kissing him, deep and ferociously, almost more bite than kiss. Steve took a couple sharp breaths and moaned into Loki's mouth, felt Loki shudder against him, his body shifting until his legs rose on either side of Steve's legs, feet planted on the couch. Steve ground down instinctively, his hips matched to Loki's. Loki pressed back, a low, wanton moan squeezed from his throat that made new lust coil in Steve's stomach, his cock half-hard again. Loki groaned again, his hips grinding in little thrusts, and panted, "It seems – your stamina is not limited to battle, hm?" and Steve felt hot all over. Loki's hands caught at his shirt and slid it up his back. "You're still half-clothed."

"Right," Steve said, intelligently, and sat up to pull off his shirt in a rush. He felt a flash of self-consciousness at the way Loki's eyes caressed his body – the discomfort he still sometimes felt, like people looking at him weren't really seeing _him_ – but it passed when Loki reached up and twined his fingers in Steve's hair, tugged his head back, and sat up to plant another brutal, sucking kiss on his throat, his other hand braced against the couch.

Steve gasped, airlessly, and his hands found Loki's shoulders and squeezed, moved down his slender arms. Loki released him, after a moment, and fell back, lying against the arm of the couch with his hair in disarray and his eyes bright and eager. And hungry. The ache in Steve's neck persisted, and he raised a hand to brush his fingers over it. _Everyone _was going to be able to see it there, he realized. And they'd all know-

Loki's hands trailed down his thighs, and the worries drifted easily away. He looked down, instead, at the bare expanse of Loki's chest, ran his hands delicately over his shoulders and down over his chest. His skin was so smooth, almost flawless, and Steve felt after a moment Loki quiver under his touch. He stilled his hands and looked up. Loki's eyes were half closed, fluttering, his lips parted. Steve slid one hand slowly down and rubbed his thumb lightly over the dark circle of one nipple.

Loki jerked with a small but sharp ragged sound. Steve blinked, almost startled at the response, but did it again, this time in a slow circle, and Loki squirmed violently underneath him, his hands clamping on the cushions of the couch. "Aaah-" Steve brought his other hand down and mimicked the motion, this time with both hands, and the sound Loki made was a thin whine, and Steve could feel Loki's cock nudging insistently at his thigh.

A notion flickering into his head, Steve bent down and pressed his mouth to one nipple, then flicked his tongue against the bud.

Both Loki's hands wrapped around his neck and dragged him up, his lips fastening in a bite under Steve's ear as his body strained under Steve's. His breathing was shallow and irregular, and Steve could feel his heart hammering where their chests were pressed together.

"What do you want me to," Steve started to ask, and Loki made a desperate sound like a strangled laugh as he broke away, his head falling back.

"Everything. _Anything._"

Loki's voice, usually so smooth, so cultured, sounded rough and breathless, and Steve could feel his need in every taut line of his body. Without really thinking about it, Steve turned his head and caught one of Loki's long fingers in his mouth, holding it lightly between his teeth. Loki twitched under him.

"If Stark interrupts," he murmured, "I do not think – I do not think I can be responsible for my actions." Steve could feel the hot, hard line of Loki's cock against his thigh and shifted his leg, grinding it deliberately downward. Loki went boneless with a breathless noise, his hips grinding back. There was still fabric in the way, though.

"Your pants," he breathed, "I need – I can't touch you with them on," and he felt his face heating up, but appearing appropriately modest didn't seem terribly important at the moment. Loki groaned, but he nodded, his head tilted back.

"Let me-"

"No," Steve said abruptly, and then blushed as Loki's eyes opened to look at him. "—I mean – let me," he said, and pulled away slowly to sit up, shifting down Loki's body to where he was straddling Loki's thighs on the slightly cramped couch. Laces, he noted, trying not to let his eyes stick too obviously on the bulge at the front. He could do laces.

Steve swallowed hard and reached out, after a moment, to cup his palm over the bulge straining under Loki's breeches, and press down lightly with the heel of his hand.

Loki's whole body bucked, the sound he made a violent cry, loud and unmuffled. Steve felt an answering tug in his belly and quickly pulled his palm away, reaching for the laces instead, pulling them loose until he could pull the front of them open. Loki sighed quietly as his cock was released, his hips arching up, and Steve took the chance to pull the pants down over his hips, noting with a bit of a flush that there was nothing underneath, just pale naked flesh. His cock curved up toward his flat stomach, hard and leaking, and Steve felt his mouth go a little dry again at the sight.

Loki helped him get them off the rest of the way. His legs seemed longer, naked – all of him seemed longer, like this, splayed out on the couch-

Loki's hands gripped his head and dragged him back up, one hand curving around the back of his skull to pull him into a wet, open-mouthed kiss, tongue languidly thrusting in and out of Steve's mouth as his hips rolled upwards. Half thoughtlessly, Steve caught Loki's lower lip lightly between his teeth, and felt Loki tense and then go limp with a shudder. When he let go, Loki's head dropped back and his hand slid out of Steve's hair down to grip his shoulder.

Steve pushed himself up and looked at Loki's face, his eyes wide and almost wholly black, his bare chest heaving and a flush high in his cheeks, and desire rose up in him all over again. He slid his hand down, ran it over the sharp edge of Loki's hipbone. Loki's body jerked under his touch, hips thrusting up toward his hands, and the sound he made-

Steve's whole body flushed and his eyes kept slipping back to Loki's erection, just a shade darker than the rest of the naked expanse of his pale skin. He moved his hand slowly from Loki's hip to brush his thumb along the curve of the shaft. Loki's whole body went taut.

"Aaanh-" Loki took several sharp, panting breaths and Steve could feel his own cock throb between his legs. This time he made the brush of his thumb a little firmer and Loki's whole body arched, and that he could get Loki to react like that, that _he _could… "Steve," Loki said, his voice strained, and he felt shivers down his spine.

"I need-" Steve swallowed, hard. "I need lubricant, something-"

"Don't you dare move," Loki hissed, and made a sharp gesture with one of his hands. A small jar appeared on Loki's chest. "There – that should-"

Steve reached for it hastily and smeared his hands with the odorless oil inside, then paused. "Just tell me," he managed. "Tell me if something's-"

"I want your hands on me," Loki said, his voice thick and faintly husky. "I want to feel your palm pressed against my flesh guiding me to completion, and then I want to push you back and taste every inch of your skin-"

Steve reached back for Loki's cock and wrapped his hand slowly around the base. His mouth was dry and he felt Loki shudder, his voice cutting off with a strangled sound. He slid his hand upwards slowly with a little bit of a twist, soft flesh sliding against his palm. Loki's hands flew up and clamped on his shoulders, almost too hard.

"Yes," he said, raggedly, and, "Steve," the vowel stretched. Hearing his name like that was intoxicating, made him feel light-headed. More sure, he brought his thumb under and traced along the sensitive ridge of flesh below the head. Loki's whole body writhed. His thighs fell further open and Steve pressed closer almost thoughtlessly. There was an eager shiver running all through his body, vague imaginings fluttering through his mind. He jacked his hand down and up once, slowly, and the sound Loki made was almost a whine.

All the words seemed to have flown out of Steve's head. He wanted to touch him everywhere, wanted to run his hands all over Loki's skin and watch the way he reacted. He didn't understand how skin that was so difficult to break could be so silky under his fingers. He wanted to just look at Loki like this, he wanted to _draw _Loki like this, with his head thrown back and his masks splintered, naked with bliss and lust writ large on his fine features.

Steve kept his hand wrapped around Loki's shaft and leaned down to press a kiss to one of his collarbones, trailing them down along towards his throat. He fastened his mouth over the little hollow at the base and sucked at it, pulling blood up to the surface, tasting the slight distinctive flavor of Loki's skin. Loki's hands on his shoulders flexed and uncurled.

"Aah – yes, that's good, that's very-"

Steve tightened his hand and stroked down with his thumb, felt Loki's cock jump in his hand. His hands loosened from Steve's shoulders, slid down his back to his hips, palms cool against overheated skin. His voice was only a shadow of its usual silky elegance, but Steve found himself responding to that almost more. "There's so many things I – nnh – I can think of that I want to do to you – share with you-"

Steve wasn't quite ashamed of the noise he didn't manage to contain. He started a rhythm with his right hand, his pulse pounding in his ears. His hand moved slickly up and down Loki's shaft as his hips arched up off the couch, thrusting in time and panting in ragged, uneven breaths. His own desire was building into an ache again.

"Just a little – ah, _yes-_" He threw back his head, long pale throat exposed, and Steve couldn't resist. He found the curve of neck and shoulder, hand still pumping and Loki's body twisting under him, made a seal with his lips, and sucked hard.

Loki's body bent like a bow, Steve's hand trapped between them. "Harder," Loki exhaled, and then reared his head up and bit Steve's shoulder hard enough to ache. Startled, Steve bit down as well, harder than he'd meant to.

He felt Loki's cock jerk in his hand, a muffled sound not quite a howl into his shoulder, felt the way his entire body seized up. Loki's head fell back against the couch arm with a thunk, and Steve felt the warm splatter of come against his chest and stomach in pulses like heartbeats. Steve worked him through it, releasing the bite and soothing the spot with his tongue. There was going to be a bruise, though. Just one mark on all that clean, pale skin. His.

Steve felt a powerful throb low in his belly, his cock filling a little bit more. He laid a kiss over the bruise and then looked to Loki's face as he felt his body go slack.

Oh.

If he'd hoped that would settle him…it didn't. The flush had grown more pronounced, spread from his cheeks. His lips were bright where it looked like he'd bitten them, his eyes half closed and slightly glazed. He looked – debauched and undone and…_gorgeous. _

_You did that, _Steve thought, and couldn't help but feel a little proud.

"Mmmnnn," Loki said, after a few moment's of silence. His eyes opened slowly. "I really ought…to have seduced you sooner."

Steve couldn't help a frown. "You didn't seduce me."

"Didn't I?" Loki's voice was lazy, slow. Steve was too aware of his half-hard cock, trapped between their bodies. Loki arched under him and he twitched and bit down on his lip, trying to calm himself. "I distinctly remember…"

Steve couldn't think well enough to argue. "Oh, just-" he said, and leaned down to kiss Loki, this time taking control, teasing his tongue against Loki's lips until they parted. He pulled away and Loki let out a little sigh.

_We need to talk about this_, Steve realized suddenly. _We can't just, _but as he opened his mouth he looked to Loki's face and fell still. He looked….eyes closed, head tilted back, a small smile curving his lips, he looked…blissful. More at ease than Steve had ever seen him.

The desire to start a conversation melted away. He wanted that expression to stay. Forever, if it could. Loki's hands floated up and down his back. "I can feel you," Loki murmured, after a few moments. His bare thigh pushed up against Steve's groin and he squeezed his eyes closed, unable to stop a moan. "You want more, mm? Hungry again already?"

Steve flushed. "If you don't-"

Loki's fingers grabbed his hair and pulled him down for a kiss, sucked on his lower lip, then released him. "If I don't want more?" he said, and his eyes had that gleam in them again that made Steve's stomach clench pleasantly. "Oh, I _do. _I think you'll want to get cleaned up."

I don't want to leave, Steve wanted to say, but he wasn't sure what Loki would do with that, so he just hesitated helplessly. Loki smirked.

"Oh, don't look so worried," he said. His hands ran down Steve's back and gripped his ass, pulled their hips together with a deliberate roll. Steve gasped sharply, and Loki squeezed once and let him go. "I never said you'd be washing up alone."

Steve swallowed hard. He was beginning to think he might have jumped in over his head.

He was beginning to think he didn't really mind.


End file.
